Nifty ends below 8000, Sensex loses 98 points; HUL falls 5%

03:30 pm Market closing
After remaining sluggish during the day, the market has ended on lower note. The Sensex was down 98.15 points at 26752.90 and the Nifty slipped 22.85 points at 7991.70. About 1257 shares advanced, 1610 shares declined and 106 shares were unchanged.

BHEL was up 5 percent, while Dr Reddy's Labs, Coal India, GAIL and L&T. HUL lost 5 percent while Tata Motors, ONGC, Tata Steel and Hindalco.

03:15 pm Kingfisher Airlines
City-based UCO Bank today said it has "identified" Vijay Mallya-owned Kingfisher Airlines (KFA) as a "wilful defaulter" and will be sending a notice to the defunct carrier. "We have identified KFA as a wilful defaulter. We are in the process of sending a notice to the company in this regard", a source in the bank told PTI. Other banks like State Bank of India and Punjab National Bank are also mulling this route. United Bank of India has already declared KFA a 'wilful defaulter' for defaulting a loan of Rs 350 crore.

Beside KFA, UCO Bank will also send a notice to the company which had furnished a corporate guarantee for availing a loan of around Rs 450 crore, the source said.

02:55pm Gold Update
Gold prices tumbled by Rs 350 to Rs 27,450 per ten gram in the national capital today following a long weekend and ending of festive season with demand drying up amidst a weak global trend.

Silver also eased by Rs 35 to Rs 38,200 per kg on reduced offtake by industrial units and coin makers.

Traders said fall in demand from jewellers and retailers due to end of festive season and a weak global trend where gold retreated from a six-week high as investors expected the
Federal Reserve to end its bond-buying programme this week, eroding safe-haven demand, mainly pulled down precious metal prices here.

Gold in Singapore, which normally set price trend on the domestic front, lost 0.3 percent to USD 1,227.51 an ounce. In Delhi, gold of 99.9 and 99.5 per cent purity plunged by
Rs 350 each to Rs 27,450 and Rs 27,250 per ten gram respectively. It had lost Rs 125 in the past two days. Sovereign followed suit and shed Rs 100 at Rs 24,200 per
piece of eight gram, reports PTI.

02:30pm Interview
In an interview to CNBC-TV18 Ashok Hiramat, CMD, Astec Lifesciences, said that the company's topline in the quarter gone by was marginally lower due to its focus on high value products. It also launched two new products where margins were better and these products contributed around 15 percent to sales in FY15, he added.

Astec Lifesciences foresees a topline growth of 20-25 percent in this fiscal and aims to maintain EBITDA margin in the range of 23-25 percent, he said.

02:00pm Market Check
It is a slow start to the post Diwali week as the 30-share BSE Sensex fell 90.62 points to 26760.43 and the Nifty declined 20.80 points to 7993.75.

Declining shares outnumbered advancing ones by a ratio of 1532 to 1195 on the Bombay Stock Exchange.

Adrian mowat of JPMorgan told CNBC-TV18 that he would add more money into India now. He downgraded Brazil to Neutral and recommended switching out of Brazil and into India. He expects another 20 percent returns on Indian markets in next 12 months.

Hindustan Unilever fell 4 percent after second quarter earnings. FMCG major met street expectations with the second quarter net profit rising 8.1 percent year-on-year to Rs 988 crore supported by exceptional gain and higher revenue growth. Profit in the year-ago period was Rs 913.8 crore.

Meanwhile, global markets have been mixed today. European markets traded with gains of over 0.5 percent while Asian markets like Hong Kong and Shanghai fell more than 0.5 percent. All eyes are on FOMC and Bank of Japan meetings lined up later this week.

In more from the commodity markets today, Brent crude continued to lose after falling for five straight weeks. Goldman Sachs cut its Brent crude price forecast to USD 85 a barrel versus USD 100 earlier predicting supply growth from non-OPEC producers will outpace demand.

In news outside the markets, the Union Government has named three persons who are black money account holders in an affidavit to the Supreme Court, namely Pradeep Burban (former director of Dabur), Pankaj Chimanlal (a Rajkot-based bullion trader and Radha Timblo (Goa-based miner).

1:50 pm Buzzing: Shares of Kansai Nerolac gained as much as 4 percent intraday on reporting a whopping 40.6 percent growth in the second quarter bottomline. Net profit of the paint company jumped to Rs 72.6 crore in the quarter ended September 2014 compared to Rs 51.7 crore in the year-ago period and net sales increased 17.2 percent year-on-year to Rs 915.2 crore from Rs 781 crore during the same period. Operating profit (including other operating income) climbed 31.3 percent on yearly basis to Rs 120.4 crore and margin expanded by 140 basis points to 13.2 percent in the quarter gone by.

1:30 pm FII interview: In an interview to CNBC-TV18 Adrian Mowat, Chief Asian & Emerging Equity Strategist, JPMorgan shared his views and outlook on the global equity markets. He said the key focus of the markets will be on the US Federal Reserve meeting this week, where the Fed might announce a closure of QE3. Mowat expects Fed to maintain low interest rates for a considerable period of time. ''We will watch for words ''considerable time'' from the Fed regarding rate moves,'' he added. Speaking about emerging markets, he said JPMorgan is looking to pump more funds into India .

The research firm has downgraded Brazil to neutral and recommends moving money from Brazil to markets like India. He expects 20 percent returns from the Indian equity market in next 12 months. Further he is betting on Indian banks and sees an attractive environment for interest rate-sensitive sectors. He prefers investing in cyclicals like autos and building materials. 

It seems to be a day of taking rest even after the long weekend as sluggish market refuse to budge ahead. The Sensex is up 6.08 points at 26857.13 and the Nifty is up 2.30 points at 8017.95. About 1177 shares have advanced, 1370 shares declined, and 98 shares are unchanged.

BHEL is up 4 percent while Dr Reddy's Labs, Sesa Sterlite, GAIL and Coal India are top gainers in the Sensex.  Defence stocks are trading higher on the hope of additional orders after the centre gives nod to projects worth Rs 80,000 crore. Banks are also doing well.

Among the losers are Tata Motors, Hero MotoCorp, ONGC and Wipro.

HUL is weak ahead of its second quarter earnings later today. A CNBC-TV18 poll expects sales growth to remain muted across most categories with 5 percent year-on-year volume growth. Margins are likely to see an improvement of 90 basis points.

Dragged by DLF, realty index is down around 4 percent.

A recovery in Asia's diesel demand growth is likely to be pushed back as governments of major oil consumers in the region take advantage of a tumble in oil prices to cut fuel subsidies and bolster their budgets.

A prolonged period of weak demand is expected to reduce margins for refineries that produce the transport and industrial fuel, traders and analysts said. The Asian gasoil margin is already set for its worst quarter in October-December since late 2010, according to Reuters data, hurt by slower economic growth and a supply glut from new refining capacity.

12:45pm Interview
Two-wheeler major Hero Motocorp witnessed a phenomenal Diwali by registering explosive sales on Dhanteras. The market leader sold over 2 lakh units on that day, which establishes the fact that the Indian economy is turning.

Speaking about the cracker sales and future of the two wheelers, Sunil Munjal, Joint MD of Hero Motocorp told CNBC-TV18 that the automotive industry saw 16 percent growth in 2-wheelers over the last six months. He acknowledged it is heartening to see healthy demand of scooters after a long time. Despite all this, Munjal believes it is sensible to be cautious now as he expects consolidation over the next six months.

Justifying his fears and hopes, Munjal said the industry is cautiously optimistic based on actions taken by the government so far but high interest rate along with deficient monsoon are deterrents. Hence, at the moment, the expectation is that the industry will see a mixed bag but general improvement on the ground, acknowledged by global rating agencies, will ensure there will be upside.

He admitted competition is heating up, but so is the share of the pie. "I think margin will not drop at this point despite competitive pressures," he said. The company is eyeing Sri Lanka, Latin American markets to increase its exports. "We are well positioned to take advantage of global and domestic opportunity," Munjal said.

12:25pm DLF In Focus
Market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has barred the company and its six executives from accessing capital markets for 3 years. It was penalised for failing to disclose key information at the time of its record-breaking 2007 market listing.

However, realty major clarifies to investors on SEBI order that subsidiaries can access markets as per legal opinion, as DLF's subsidiaries with different PAN numbers are not named in SEBI order.

Furthermore, DLF lawyers opine subsidiaries can list REITs as their REIT plans were always at subsidiary level. The company's lawyers also say subsidiaries can issue commercial mortgage backed securities.

In a release dated two weeks back, the company had stated, ''DLF and its Board wish to reassure its investors and all other stakeholders that it has not acted in contravention of law either during its initial public offer or otherwise. DLF and its board were guided by and acted on the advise of eminent legal advisors, merchant bankers and audit firms while formulating its Offer documents. DLF will defend itself to the fullest extent against any adverse findings and measures contained in the Order passed by SEBI. DLF has full faith in the judicial process and is confident of vindication of its stand in the near future.''

12:00pm Market Check
The market remained directionless in the expiry week. The 30-share BSE Sensex declined 6.68 points to 26844.37 while the 50-share NSE Nifty held 8000 level, down 2.50 points to 8012.05. Banking and financials, and capital goods stocks supported the market while auto, FMCG and oil stocks declined.

Adrian Mowat of JPMorgan turned more bullish on India post the Brazilian election outcome, saying he would add more money into Indian equity market especially into banks and cyclicals like autos and building materials. He expects 20 percent returns from Indian market in next 12 months.

DLF and Jindal Steel topped the selling list in the Nifty, down nearly 8 percent. As far as DLF is concerned, reports indicated that the new BJP government in Haryana is going to heavily probe the company's land deals with Robert Vadra (son-in-law of Sonia Gandhi). In case of JSPL, report indicated that CBI registered preliminary enquiry against the company and some environment ministry officers for alleged diversion of forest land.

In key results today, HUL traded weak ahead of it's second quarter earnings later today, down over a percent. A CNBC-TV18 poll expects sales growth to remain muted across most categories with 5 percent year-on-year volume growth. Operating profit margin is likely to see an improvement of 90 bps.

L&T, Bharat Electronics and Walchandnagar Industries shot up 1-10 percent on the hope of additional orders after the centre gave nod to defence projects worth Rs 80,000 crore.

Tata Motors fell over 2 percent followed by ONGC, Reliance Industries, Wipro and NTPC with around a percent. However, Dr Reddy's Labs and BHEL gained 2-3 percent.

11:45 am Interview: Two-wheeler major Hero MotoCorp witnessed a phenomenal Diwali by registering explosive sales on Dhanteras. The market leader sold over 2 lakh units on that day, which establishes the fact that the Indian economy is turning. Speaking about the cracker sales and future of the two wheelers, Sunil Munjal, Joint MD of Hero MotoCorp told CNBC-TV18 that the automotive industry saw 16 percent growth in 2-wheelers over the last six months. He acknowledged it is heartening to see healthy demand of scooters after a long time.

Despite all this, Munjal believes it is sensible to be cautious now as he expects consolidation over the next six months. Justifying his fears and hopes, Munjal said the industry is cautiously optimistic based on actions taken by the government so far but high interest rate along with deficient monsoon are deterrents. Hence, at the moment, the expectation is that the industry will see a mixed bag but general improvement on the ground, acknowledged by global rating agencies, will ensure there will be upside.

11:30 am Buzzing: Shares of DLF continued to remain under heavy selling pressure, falling 8 percent intraday. Investors are cautious as media reports suggest that the new BJP-led Haryana government is going to probe into all land scams, including the deal between UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi's son-in-law Robert Vadra and realty developer DLF.

The report quoted senior cabinet minister Anil Vij, ''We would hold a probe into acquisition of 70,000 acres during the 10-year regime of Bhupinder Singh Hooda government. We would inquire whether the land was used for the purpose it was acquired. It would be probed if there was any violation in acquisition to benefit any individual.''

Earlier in July, Bhupinder Singh Hooda (former Haryana chief minister) government had legalised the controversial land deal between Vadra-owned company Skylight Hospitality and DLF.

The Nifty starts October F&O expiry week with marginal gains. The 50-share index is up 8.95 points at 8023.50 and the Sensex is up 34.38 points at 26885.43. About 1143 shares have advanced, 1085 shares declined, and 83 shares are unchanged.

BHEL, Dr Reddy's Labs, HDFC, GAIL and SBI are major gainers while Tata Motors, ONGC, HUL, M&M and NTPC are major losers in the Sensex. DLF is down 8 percent.

Globally Asian stocks trade mixed with the Nikkei at a two-week high following results from the ECB's stress tests and gains in the US last week. Brazil is in focus as Dilma Rousseff narrowly wins second term as President.

Brent crude futures extended declines to below USD 86 a barrel after Goldman Sachs cut its price forecasts for the contract and for U.S. oil by USD 15 in the first quarter of next year.

The US investment bank said in a research note on Sunday that it had cut its forecast for West Texas Intermediate to USD 75 a barrel from USD 90, and its prediction for Brent to USD 85 from USD 100, with rising production in non-OPEC countries outside North America expected to outstrip demand.

10:45am FII View
In an interview to CNBC-TV18 Adrian Mowat, Chief Asian & Emerging Equity Strategist, JPMorgan said the key focus of the markets will be on the US Federal Reserve meeting this week, where the Fed might announce a closure of QE3. Mowat expects Fed to maintain low interest rates for a considerable period of time. ''We will watch for words ''considerable time'' from the Fed regarding rate moves,'' he added.

Speaking about emerging markets, he said JPMorgan is looking to pump more funds into India . The research firm has downgraded Brazil to neutral and recommends moving money from Brazil to markets like India. He expects 20 percent returns from the Indian equity market in next 12 months.

Further he is betting on Indian banks and sees an attractive environment for interest rate-sensitive sectors. He prefers investing in cyclicals like autos and building materials.

10:30am Brent crude declines
Brent crude futures extended declines to below USD 86 a barrel on Monday after Goldman Sachs cut its price forecasts for the contract and for US oil by USD 15 in the first quarter of next year.

The US investment bank said in a research note on Sunday that it had cut its forecast for West Texas Intermediate to USD 75 a barrel from USD 90, and its prediction for Brent to USD 85 from USD 100, with rising production in non-OPEC countries outside North America expected to outstrip demand.

The bank's analysts expect WTI to fall as low as USD 70 a barrel and Brent to USD 80 in the second quarter of 2015, when it expects oversupply to be most pronounced.

London Brent crude for December delivery was trading 32 cents lower at USD 85.81 a barrel by 0152 GMT, after settling down 70 cents on Friday. The front-month contract dropped to below USD 83 on Oct. 16, its lowest in almost four years.

US crude for December delivery was down 8 cents at USD 80.93 a barrel, reports Reuters.

10:00am Market Check
Equity benchmarks remained positive amid consolidation. The Sensex climbed 52.62 points to 26903.67 and the Nifty rose 16.40 points to 8030.95. About 982 shares have advanced, 921 shares declined, and 77 shares are unchanged on the Bombay Stock Exchange.

Banking and financial stocks supported the market. Top lender State Bank of India and rival HDFC Bank rallied around a percent each while ICICI Bank was up 0.5 percent. Housing finance company HDFC gained 1.8 percent.

Dr Reddy's Labs, BHEL and Gail India topped the buying list, up 2-3 percent. Hindalco Industries gained more than a percent.

However, commercial vehicle maker Tata Motors and utility vehicle maker Mahindra & Mahindra fell more than 1.5 percent on profit taking. Two-wheeler manufacturers Hero Motocorp and Bajaj Auto declined 0.8 percent each while car maker Maruti Suzuki lost 0.4 percent.
 
Shares of ITC, Sun Pharma, ONGC, Wipro, HUL and NTPC declined 0.5-0.8 percent.

9:55 am Results: FMCG major Hindustan Unilever (HUL) is expected to report a 8.3 percent growth in second quarter (July-September) profit after tax at Rs 990 crore compared to Rs 914 crore in same quarter last year, according to the average of estimates of analysts polled by CNBC-TV18.

Adjusted profit after tax of the company is likely to jump 12.1 percent to Rs 990 crore from Rs 883 crore during the same period. In Q2FY14, results included an exceptional credit of Rs 33 crore.

Total income from operations may increase 11 percent to Rs 7,650 crore in the quarter ended September 2014 compared to Rs 6,893 crore in the year-ago period led by price and product mix.

9:45 am Brent price: Brent crude futures extended declines to below USD 86 a barrel on Monday after Goldman Sachs cut its price forecasts for the contract and for U.S. oil by USD 15 in the first quarter of next year. The U.S. investment bank said in a research note on Sunday that it had cut its forecast for West Texas Intermediate to USD 75 a barrel from USD 90, and its prediction for Brent to USD 85 from USD 100, with rising production in non-OPEC countries outside North America expected to outstrip demand.

The bank's analysts expect WTI to fall as low as USD 70 a barrel and Brent to USD 80 in the second quarter of 2015, when it expects oversupply to be most pronounced.

9:30 am Fund raising: The country's largest auto maker Tata Motors has raised USD 750 million from Asian and European investors by selling a dual tranche bond issue which got an over subscription of six times at USD 4.5 billion.

The company has priced the 5.5-year benchmark senior unsecured notes of USD 500 million at 4.625 percent, while the coupon for the 10-year USD 250 million notes is fixed at 5.750 percent per annum. It had sold USD 300 million worth bonds in April at a coupon of 5.53 percent for a five-year money, indicating better operating environment for the company.

The market continues its uptrend in first session after the auspicious Mahurat trading. The Sensex is up 106.15 points at 26957.20 and the Nifty is up 49.80 points at 8064.35.
 
About 498 shares have advanced, 116 shares declined, and 27 shares are unchanged.

Dr Reddy's Labs, TCS, BHEL and HUL are top gainers in the Sensex. Among the losers are Wipro, GAIL, Cipla and Sun Pharma.

The Indian rupee opened higher by 11 paise at 61.17 per dollar versus 61.28 Wednesday. The euro held firm in early trade after the European Central Bank's stress tests found smaller capital shortfalls among European Banks than expected. Traders will be looking to Germany's IFO business sentiment index due later today.

Pramit Brahmbhatt of Veracity said, "After a long weekend, equity markets are likely to trade sideways and will take cues from global markets for further directions. Rupee is expected to trade firm, although strength in dollar could cap upside moves in rupee altogether. Range for the USD-INR seen between Rs 60.80-61.80/dollar."

US stocks climbed on Friday, with Wall Street derailing a four-week slide with its best week this year, as quarterly results from companies including Microsoft and Procter & Gamble inspired investor enthusiasm.

In addition, the Federal Reserve will begin its 2-day policy meeting on Tuesday. The fed is expected to end its 3rd round of bond buying with investors eyeing clues on rate hike timings.

In Europe, concerns about the results of Europe's bank stress tests and the first Ebola case in New York, weighed on investor sentiment ending the FTSE Friday's session down around half a percent. Moreover, other core indices, CAC and DAX were down around seven tenths of a percent.

Brent crude slipped below USD 86 a barrel amid abundant supply and weak demand.

And in metals space, gold edged lower as rallying equity markets and strong us economic data dented demand for the precious metal as an insurance against risk.